Electronic Program Guides (EPGs) or Interactive Program Guides (IPGs) are applications, which normally run on a screen of a television set or on a set-top box, with the program guide information appearing on the screen of the television. One problem with this approach is that the guide data must either replace or overlay the program that the user is watching, thus interfering with normal program viewing. This is especially a problem when a group of people is watching television and only one of them (usually the one with the remote control) wants to access the program guide.
Various systems and devices for displaying a program guide on a television screen have been proposed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,130,726 A1 is directed to a remote control unit having a graphic display for depicting program scheduling and/or advertising information without causing an interruption in content that is being depicted on an associated television monitor.
Although allowing watching television without being disturbed by the display of a program guide, this system does not allow a plurality of users to access a program guide without disturbing each other.